Taken
by Toothless-Nightfury96
Summary: The newborn heir to the throne of Berk is taken in a dragon raid. 15 years later, he returns unknowingly to his place of birth.
1. Taken in the Night

**Another New Story!**

 **So since you people wanted both of my stories, here you go!**

 **Enjoy :)**

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"Oh she's beautiful Ingrid! Congratulations!" says Valka Haddock with excitement while trying not to wake her own child, nestled in a cloak of fur.

"Thanks Val. Now your son will have a best friend," jokes Ingrid Hofferson.

Valka laughs in return. "So out with it; what's her name?" she pleads.

"Astrid," she says with honour. "'Divine Beauty' as the gods put it. Yes, Halvar and I are very happy with our bundle of joy." She brings baby Astrid closer to Valka's son Hiccup so that both infants can 'meet'. Astrid's sapphire eyes meet Hiccup's emerald ones and both coo and babble to one another. "Looks like they're getting along already," continues Ingrid.

"She has your eyes," responds Valka to her best friend.

"He has your hair and Stoick's eyes," says Ingrid. Valka nods in agreement. Both mothers separate their respective children once they grew tired and started to fall asleep.

"Light is fading Ingrid, perhaps we should go home?" suggests Valka. The two women are standing in Berk's centre plaza, watching the shadows disappear as the light from the sky fades into darkness.

Ingrid sighs. She wants the whole village to know of her newborn child. "Perhaps you're right, tomorrow is another day."

"Exactly," says Valka as she turns to walk towards her home.

"You don't want to keep your chief waiting," jabs Ingrid with a smirk on her face.

"I'm sure my husband can wait a bit longer," retorts Valka as she continues walking up the hill.

"I don't know," sing-songs Ingrid. "You do have the heir to the throne of Berk in your arms."

Valka turns and scrunches up her face playfully. Ingrid laughs in return. "See you tomorrow," Valka says in her tired voice.

"See you Val, good night," replies Ingrid. Both women go their separate ways. Now Valka lives with the chief of the tribe, Stoick 'the Vast' Haddock. And their house just so happens to be near the top of the hill; so to say that it was a hike home was an understatement. By the time Valka was near the top, she was exhausted; Hiccup may have been small but was still difficult to carry while hiking up the hill. She reached the front door of her majestic home, the largest in the village, when she hears a faint noise. She turns to see what the noise was. Several more sounds emanated but in different tones and octaves. She knew what was coming: a dragon raid.

Valka swings open the door quickly where her husband sat near a large fire in the middle of their home. "Stoick," she pants. He turns to look at her and could see the expression of horror on her face. "The dragons are back." Those four words were the only things out of her mouth by the time Stoick had gathered his weapon and helmet and stormed towards the door.

"Protect our son Val. I'll be back when this is all over." Both nod to each other in silent acknowledgement. Stoick's face then turns into a devilish smile. "Let's show these _devils_ what they are in for." He storms out of the front door and screams "DRAGON RAID!" at the top of his lungs. Stoick lived up to his namesake: Vast. His booming voice could probably be heard from across the archipelago, sending shivers down the spines of dragons ready for slaughter. Valka puts Hiccup in his cradle and runs out of her home. She thought that the dragons had a reason for attacking Berk and that they could be reasoned with. As she spent years doing it, she knew all too well that it was an unpopular opinion. Valka closes the door behind her and witnesses the bloodshed of these dragon raids. Vikings and dragons alike perished; homes burned to the ground. She runs down the hill avoiding dragon fire towards a house where a small flock of sheep are running away from a group of Deadly Nadders.

Meanwhile on a lookout platform are Halvar Hofferson, Asmund Ingerman, and Spitelout Jorgenson where they are counting numbers and planning where to send catapult fire. "I just found out I'm going to be a father and _this_ is what happens," groans Asmund.

"Welcome to the club pal. I became a father two days ago, how do you think I feel?" retorts Halvar.

"Will you two mutton heads shut up about your families for a while and focus on the problem at hand?" snaps Spitelout.

"'Lout, you're just jealous that your sister married first," jabs Asmund. "And of all people, she married the Chief and you are now his brother by law so stop complaining!"

"Speaking of the devil," mutters Spitelout as Stoick climbs up to the platform.

"Give me a report lads!" roars Stoick.

"Nine Nadders, 12 Gronckles, four Zipplebacks, a few dozen Terrors, and two Nightmares," reports Asmund.

Halvar steps forward, gaining the attention of the chief. "Sir, Mulch reported seeing a dragon with four wings circling the village."

"Four wings?" asks Stoick. Halvar nods. "New devil perhaps. Send word to all bola throwers to capture the beast and allow me to take care of it," he orders.

"Another entry into Bork's book?" asks Spitelout.

"Quite possibly," replies Stoick. "Now send the word!" Stoick, Spitelout, and Halvar jump down from the tower and run up to various Vikings, giving them new orders and dodging dragon fire with little grace.

While Stoick and his entourage of messenger Vikings are busy fighting in the plaza, Valka is huddled with some younger Vikings from the dragons near the forge. Valka makes her way to the forge without being noticed by a pair of Nadders. "How is it going over here Gobber?"

"Val?" says Gobber, the village's blacksmith, with a questioning tone. "Wha' in Thor's name are ye doing here? You should be protecting yer baby, and our rightful heir!"

"I know Gobber; I'm just making sure all is well." Valka's response was mostly a lie; she just wanted to make sure not too many dragons were killed.

"Get back inside!" orders Gobber. "If your child gets killed by a dragon, all blame will be on you!" Gobber's words pierced like daggers; he was right. How could Valka abandon her baby? Her child's life meant more than any of the lives of the dragons attacking combined. Valka continues to stand frozen in the forge. "GO!" yells Gobber. Valka knew he didn't mean it; he just didn't want to lose his best friend's child.

Valka runs out of the forge, not caring if being sighted by a dragon. She runs straight towards her house when she hears an agony of pain from a dragon. She looks to her left where a Monstrous Nightmare was snagged in a bola. It raises its head to look at her as she stands 20 feet away. A blond Viking runs towards the beast, axe in hand, ready to finish it off. She runs up to him. "Stop! You'll only make it worse!" she pleads at the Viking. The Nightmare manages to free itself from the bola and flies away. The Viking looks at her with a disappointed scowl, like someone skimped on the meat in his sandwich. He walks away from Valka as she hears a crunch from up the hill. She turns to see a dragon breaking into a home; _her home_. "Hiccup!" she says with horror.

Valka sprints up the hill towards her house. She could no longer see the dragon as it went completely through the roof. It never left so there could be still a chance to save her child. She bursts through the door and grabs a sword off of a rack nearby and races to Hiccup's crib where the dragon is… _playing with him?_ She freezes and watches as the dragon rocks the cradle and makes Hiccup coo and babble happily. The dragon seems alerted to her presence and moves towards her, while accidentally cutting Hiccup's chin with its talon. Valka can only stare into the giant dragon's eyes and listen to her baby cry in pain in the background. The eyes of the beast somehow connected with Valka; this wasn't a mindless killing monster. It cared for the young of another species, even risking its own life in doing so. Valka wanted to drop the sword and hold out her hand for the creature to show that she is not a threat.

However, an axe was thrown and imbeds itself in the wall next to them. "VALKA RUN!" screams Stoick. The dragon felt threatened and fired at the Chief who himself has to vacate the building in order to save himself. The dragon turns back to a terrified Valka and then takes off through the hole in the roof it created earlier. Valka deeply exhales on a breath she never knew she was holding and the sound echoed through the scorched building, voiding it of its haunting silence.

Silence.

Valka rushes over to the cradle and her heart sinks into her stomach; it is empty. She looks up into the night sky and can hear a baby's cry; _her baby._ She drops to her knees as Stoick barges in through the front door. He rushes over next to Valka and notices the empty cradle before dropping to his knees and hugging her. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, the heir to the throne of Berk, taken in a dragon raid. His last memory will be his cries as it echoes throughout the entire village.

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 **Well what did you think?**

 **Let me know in a review.**

 **You guys are Awesome!**


	2. Complaint of the Day

**Chapter 2 is FINALLY OUT!**

 **I'm sorry about the long wait, two other stories to write takes its toll.**

 **Anyway I would like to thank all of you for such a successful first chapter! 38 Followers, 24 Favourites, and 15 Reviews. That honestly made me incredibly happy to see!**

 **Just a warning that this Author's Note will be longer than I intended.**

 **First off, this story is working under the assumption that the Haddock clan is the 'Royal Family' or 'Chiefdom Family' of Berk. Hopefully this clears things up. Secondly, this story's 'history' will be briefly explained during a later chapter. So it could still be slightly confusing. (Sorry)**

 **Anyway, I would like to say something. If this is the first story you have read of mine, here is how I do things regarding reviews:**

 **1) User reviews [That don't involve cryptic two word sentences such as 'PLEASE UPDATE'] I shall answer to via PM. They are called reviews for a reason...**

 **2) Guest reviews from the particular chapter [Again that are not two word reviews] will be answered in the Author Notes section (THIS SECTION) at the beginning of the next chapter.**

 **3) I will try to answer each and every single User Review regardless of how old the chapter/story is.**

 **4) I will only answer Guest Reviews written prior to the following chapter release.**

 **GUEST REVIEWS:**

 **Guest 1: I'm that you're interested after only one chapter. What made it so interesting?**

 **Guest 2: I have the story mostly planned out. However I will not spoil anything, you will have to wait and see what happens.**

 **DeadGirlWalking: Thank you for the compliment!**

 **TheRebbs98: I'm glad you enjoy the story. Next chapter will be a Hiccup chapter, hopefully it can give a glimpse as to his future.**

 **Septimus714: I'm glad that you think the story is good so far. I hope that with each chapter that more will be 'elaborated' if you will.**

 **Alright Reviews done and a long Author's Note section completed! Enjoy!**

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Light begins to glimmer over the horizon and starts to illuminate Berk. The village was covered in the remnants of dragons' fire. Houses are still smoldering but are slowly being extinguished by the fire brigade. Several houses were completely destroyed and needed to be rebuilt; others needed minor repairs. Three structures made it through the night mostly unscathed: The hut on the rock spire where the elder, Gothi, lives, the forge, and the Great Hall. Stoick walks around what still stands of the village and looks at the destruction. He lets out a long sigh before walking towards the Great Hall. Many villagers are standing on the steps, waiting for orders. Many Vikings give him plenty of space after rumours of the horrid event that happened within the Haddock hall spread like wildfire.

Stoick approaches Asmund who finishes a damage report from the intelligence gathered by numerous villagers. "What do you have to report Asmund?" Stoick sounds exhausted after a long sleepless night. He spent all night fighting the dragons and had his child's cries ringing through his head for most of it.

"From the dragons' aspect, we killed four Nadders, three Gronckles, one Zippleback, 14 Terrors, and none of the Nightmares." He pauses. "From our side, we lost four sheep, nine chickens, and two yaks; not to mention all of the property damage." He pauses again to let it all settle in. "None severely injured, three moderately injured, six with minor injuries, and one," he pauses again, knowing he will have to say a word that he doesn't want Stoick to hear.

"I know what you're going to say Asmund, you might as well say it," the Chief says in a dreadful voice.

"Casualty," concludes Asmund.

"Could have been worse," says Stoick in defeat after a long depressing sigh. He leaves Asmund behind as he makes his way up the rest of the stairs and enters the Great Hall.

Meanwhile, down by the docks, Halvar and Spitelout are arguing. "Finn isn't back yet from Trader's Isle, where in Thor's name could he be?" asks Halvar with worry in his voice

"You're worried about your older brother? He's harder to kill than you think," scoffs Spitelout.

"My brother is still out there! He is my family; who knows if he was ambushed by the dragons?" says Halvar franticly.

"You sound nervous. Are you, 'Fearless' Halvar Hofferson, scared?" jabs Spitelout.

Halvar can feel the blood rush to his face in anger. "Don't bring my family's honour into this Spitelout," he spits.

Spitelout scoffs. "You Hoffersons have your pride up to your head; you're so full of yourselves."

Halvar cools down and just looks down, breaking eye contact with Spitelout. "That would be Finn for you," he mutters. He looks back up quickly in realisation. "You accuse my family of its honour on a day like today?! The Chief lost his son last night! How would you feel if it was Snotlout?"

"How would you feel if it was Astrid?" jabs Spitelout. Halvar freezes and looks stunned. He was still adjusting to the whole 'being a father' thing. Finally, Spitelout breaks the silence. "Who do you think is to blame?"

"The dragons obviously, they're the ones who took his child."

"The dragons would have never taken the boy had Valka been there, like she was told, to protect her child." Spitelout looks down in anger.

Halvar goes wide eyed. "Valka is your sister, how could you say something like that?"

Spitelout spits. "She isn't my sister anymore now that she married the Chief."

"Just because her name changed, doesn't mean you're no longer related; you both share your parents' blood." Halvar can't believe the words coming out of the Jorgenson's mouth.

"You're defending her and her actions?" accuses Spitelout.

"I don't know what happened in her home but I do know this. I'm defending her because the Hoffersons have _always_ stood beside the Haddocks in any situation," glares Halvar.

"Jumping to the Chief's defense before knowing anything." Spitelout hisses. "Typical for you, Hofferson."

"You act like you hate our Chief! I know you always act like you could be better, but truth of the matter Spitelout, is that Stoick is one of the best chiefs we have had in a long time. I doubt you could do better!"

"I could do better Halvar, you could too. You seem like a responsible parent," says Spitelout with a devilish grin on his face.

"That's where you're going?!" yells Halvar. "Hiccup was killed last night; don't you feel any remorse? He was your nephew!"

"Of course I feel remorse, just not as much as you expect. Hiccup was never expected to survive to begin with. Have you looked at how small the boy was? No wonder he was named Hiccup. Yet my stubborn sister and our stubborn Chief refused to abandon the child," proclaims Spitelout.

"You just referred Valka as your sister," jabs Halvar jokingly.

"You're starting to get under my skin, you know that?"

"Good," deadpans Halvar.

"You seem to be taking the boy's death quite hard. Why is that; you are in no way related to him?" asks Spitelout.

"He was the Chief's son for starters." Halvar sighs. "I was hoping for Astrid to eventually befriend him, or even marry him if that's what she would want," says Halvar quietly.

Spitelout snorts. "You think your daughter would want to settle for 'Stoick's Little Embarrassment'? She would want to be with someone strong and more Viking-like, like my son will be. You and I can start arranging their marriage; when the time comes of course."

"If your son is going to be anything like you, then I will happily refuse without consideration," says Halvar boldly.

"You disappoint me Halvar," spits Spitelout before storming off to the Great Hall.

"What the hell is wrong with him?" mutters Halvar quietly. He turns to face the waters off the docks in hopes of a small ship flying the Berkian colours sailing to port. None can be found; Finn is still out to sea. He starts to walk towards the Great Hall, keeping a distance behind Spitelout.

Inside the Great Hall, Valka is crying heavily while sitting at one of the tables. Beside her sits Ingrid with an unhappy Astrid in her arms, and across from her sits Gobber. She looks up to see Stoick walking towards the table. "Oh Stoick, this is all my fault," she whimpers.

"Val, this isn't your fault," whispers Stoick.

"Yes it is," she exclaims. "Our son is dead because I couldn't kill a dragon."

"Oh Valka," says Stoick as he sits down next to Gobber. He takes her hand. "Don't blame yourself."

"That's all I can do," she says in between sobs. "The Heir to Berk is dead because of me, and my stupid decisions."

Stoick opens his mouth to say something but Ingrid interrupts. "Look Valka, Hiccup isn't dead because of you. This isn't your fault; you didn't know that there would be a dragon raid or that a dragon would land on your house. No one knew anything. Val, I'm here for you; as a friend."

"Val, when you are good and ready, I want you to go see Bucket. He can get a drawing of the dragon from what you tell him so we know what we are looking for. We will avenge our son." He pauses knowing that those were not the best choice of words. "Forget what I said and instead take your time Val. Like Ingrid said, I'm here for you; as your husband." Ingrid looks up at the Chief who is trying to be supportive. She gives a small smile. "Come on Gobber, let's give them some space. I still have to tell the village something."

Gobber says nothing as he gets up. Both men start their way to the doors to the Hall. They almost reach them when the door opens and Asmund, Halvar, and Spitelout walk in. "Chief, there is someone outside who wants to speak with you," says Asmund.

"I wonder who that might be," mutters Stoick.

"Mildew with his 'Complaint of the Day'," deadpans Gobber.

"Probably," says Stoick in return. "Halvar and Asmund, do you mind if you stay by my wife's side? 'Lout, you're with me," orders the Chief. Asmund and Halvar run to the table while Stoick, Gobber, and Spitelout walk outside where sure enough, Mildew is waiting on the steps. "I know you're here to ratter my cage Mildew, so just get on with it," says Stoick impatiently. He is not in the mood to deal with the cranky old man.

"Right to the point, aren't ye Stoick," says Mildew.

"Get on with it Mildew, the Chief has other things on his mind," jabs Gobber.

"Fine," deadpans Mildew. "We are in outrage Stoick, your son is dead and your wife is to blame. I say we should see her punished." No one dares make a noise against the Chief.

Stoick pinches the bridge of his nose. "No one is getting punished Mildew."

"That's ridiculous Stoick! A dragon killed your son! Surely we should blame the one who FAILED TO PROTECT HER CHILD!" yells Mildew hoping that Valka would hear.

Gobber steps forward. "I think ye should leave Mildew, tha Chief is no' in tha mood ta talk ta ye."

"Listen to yourselves people! You all sympathize for the Chief! Even he can't keep his wife in line. Maybe we should get a chief who can!" yells Mildew.

Stoick sees red but Gobber interrupts. "Are ye disrespecting tha Chief's authority?"

"No Gobber, I'm not disrespecting him. I'm worried about him, I really am. I mean he is 30 now. Now us Vikings don't live that long, let alone with the dragon raids," says Mildew slowly to drawl out the meaning of his words.

"If tha' were the case, I can't wait for ye ta keel over," mutters Gobber quietly.

"I don't mean to disrespect our _glorious_ Chief but anything can happen to any of us. We need another heir before Stoick loses a battle to a dragon, a _Night Fury_ perhaps."

"Mildew you sound ridiculous. There hasn't been a Night Fury attacking Berk since three summers ago. Damned things are probably gone for good, thank Odin," spits Spitelout.

"We need an heir Stoick!" yells Mildew.

"And we shall have another child worthy of the title Mildew; once Valka and I are ready."

"Better make it fast Chief; your days are numbered!" cries Mildew.

"So are yours Mildew." Stoick turns to Spitelout. "Get him out of my sight." Spitelout nods and escorts Mildew forcefully away from the Great Hall. Stoick turns to face the silent crowd. "As you are well aware, my son was killed last night. No one is to blame for this tragedy. You all know the drill for the home repairs. All I ask of you is to give Valka and I time to grieve for our loss." Stoick sounds exhausted through his short speech. Vikings start heading down the steps while Gobber and Stoick enter the hall.

As they approach the table, Halvar stands up to greet him. "My apologies Chief, Ingrid and I are going back to our house to start repairing the damage from last night." Stoick simply nods. "Ingrid, let's go."

"I'm sorry Valka," whispers Ingrid before following her husband out the door while carrying a now crying Astrid.

"Asmund, I assume your home was damaged too. You may leave."

"Thank you Chief. I don't know if I said this before but the Ingerman clan offer their condolences."

Stoick and Valka give small nods and Asmund leaves the Hall quickly. Stoick turns to face his best friend. "Gobber, I assume you have work to do?"

"As always Stoick, I'll get ta it now." Gobber turns and limps towards the giant doors.

Stoick gives Valka a loving hug and just holds her as she continues to cry.

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Later that night in the Hofferson household, Halvar and Ingrid just finished putting Astrid to bed and are now sitting around the fire in the main hall of their home. "Honey, I need to tell you something. For your ears only," says Halvar.

"What is it Halvar?" asks Ingrid.

He looks at her in the eye. "It's about the Jorgensons."

"Oh no, what happened now?" she asks worryingly.

"Spitelout is already taking about marriage proposals since Hiccup is… no longer with us."

"Are you kidding me?! Astrid is barely three days old and he is already taking about marriage!" shrieks Ingrid.

"I feel like something bad is going to happen soon Ingrid." Halvar sounds very serious in his words.

"Like what?"

"I have a feeling that Spitelout is going to usurp the throne from Stoick somehow, now that the Heir is gone."

"Spitelout makes me sick. There is no way that his son will be marrying our daughter!"

"I'm glad we're on the same page then," deadpans Halvar. "Look, Spitelout has _always_ been power hungry. He could try to convince the village to overthrow Stoick and make the Jorgensons the royal family of Berk."

"Then we should stop him now before he gets any bright ideas."

"And what, start a civil war? No, we have to be subtle about this. We must gather our most trusted allies and protect the Chief."

"So we get the Ingermans and Gobber?"

"Exactly my plan. We have to be quiet about it though; small council meetings, that sort of thing. I'll talk to Asmund tomorrow in private and see what he thinks. We have to prove to Stoick that Spitelout is planning to be more than just 'Second-in-Command'."

"We have to be careful about this though Halvar or dragons won't be the only thing we will have to worry about."

"You're right. Because if the Jorgenson clan rises to power, Gods help us all.

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 **Chapter 2 is Completed**

 **What did you think of this chapter?**

 **Let me know in a review.**

 **You Guys are Awesome! :)**


	3. Draconis

**Welcome back! Chapter 3 is now out!**

 **I'm sorry for such the long wait, I wanted to make this part somewhat believable since we have travelled to a land far from Berk.**

 **Welcome to what is present day Southern Germany, at the base of the Alps that borders Austria. (For reference only, not important in the story.)**

 **GUEST REVIEWS FROM CHAPTER 2**

 **Guest (1): Thank you for the compliment and the suggestions, but I have most of this story thought out. You will have to wait and see the end result.**

 **Guest (2): Starting now, each chapter will alternate between Hiccup and Berk until the eventually merge at the story's end. This chapter is Hiccup: post kidnapping.**

 **Guest (3): I have plans for Mildew, you will have to wait and see for his future.**

 **Guest (4): You will have to wait and see for the result of Hiccup and Astrid. And you're right, the Jorgensons probably couldn't run Berk even if they tried. I wanted to antagonize the clan but not necessarily make them the 'Villains'. LONG LIVE HTTYD, LONG LIVE THE FANDOM, LONG LIVE THE CHIEF!**

 **dragonlovewater: I love Halvar too, hopefully as time goes on, we shall know more about him. I'm glad you like the story, and how 'believable' it is. By the way, Dragons DO exist, we just have to find them. (They are the MASTERS of Hide and Seek). As for the Dragonese thing, I agree with you. The whole 'Dragonese' thing is not my cup of tea. My reasons why will be put in the 'End of Chapter Author's Note' section.**

 **END OF GUEST REVIEWS**

 **Some quick things to point out before you begin the chapter:**

 **1\. "Norse Dialogue"  
2\. " _German Dialogue_ "  
3\. 'Character _Thoughts_ '  
4\. Ehren is pronounced the same as Aaron is**

 **Enjoy Chapter 3 (Sorry for the long Author's Note)**

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Ehren Haus wakes up in his bed next to his wife Gertrude. The sun has yet to rise over the peak of the mountains, yet the sky was starting to illuminate faint pinks and blues; the day was just beginning. For a farmer, he was quite happy with his life: he had a beautiful wife and two gorgeous daughters. He was a simple man, living a simple life. The brown haired, blue eyed man was just under six feet tall, yet he was still considered tall in his tiny village situated in the at the base of the mountain range. He was also quite smart too, one of the only people in the entire village to read and write. His world was quite small, not stretching far beyond eyesight of his home. Getting up from his bed, he makes his way down to his kitchen where he grabs a loaf of bread and prepares it for his family. Ehren wasn't a rich man, but he did have connections in his village. One of his crops is wheat, to which he gives the baker, and in return receives a fresh loaf of bread almost daily.

Shortly later, his homestead is alive with activity. Gertrude walks into the main hall carrying one year old Elise and behind her walks three year old Katrina. Elise is still asleep while Katrina is full of energy. " _Daddy!_ " she screams with joy. She runs and jumps into her father's arms.

" _Katrina love, you are full of energy today. We might have to get you to work already,_ " jokes Ehren. While Katrina is too young and small to work with Ehren, she does help with Gertrude inside the homestead. " _Gertrude, honey, I am going to the market now, what do we need?_ " he asks.

" _We have mostly everything for the day, all we need are some potatoes,_ " responds Gertrude.

" _Alright, thanks. I shouldn't be too long, assuming Adolph has no lines at this early hour._ " Ehren gets up and saunters out of his home. The market is just down the road so the journey is more of a jaunt.

Mere minutes later, he walks up to the market stall where potatoes are on display. " _Ehren, my old friend; what can I do for you this fine morning?_ " asks Adolph with glee.

" _Gertrude wants potatoes, what can you get me?"_ Ehren looks keen on his objective.

" _Ah of course, here!"_ Adolph reaches into a basket behind the stall. " _The biggest potatoes I have for my good friend!"_ He reaches out with rather large russet potatoes. " _On the house! On the condition I get first pick of one of your famous squash's,_ " he adds.

" _How could I possibly say no?_ " asks Ehren rhetorically while chuckling. He takes the potatoes and puts them into a small wicker basket sitting on the stand. " _You can get this basket back next week when you come to pick your squash!"_ jokes Ehren. Both men laugh. " _Well crops need attending to, don't they?"_

" _Of course; take care friend!"_ says Adolph. Both men shake hands and Ehren walks back to his homestead. While he walks back, he looks up in the sky. The skies were still quite dark but he could make out a winged creature flying high above the ground. He thought nothing of it and continued walking. Ehren's village was accustomed to winged animals flying overhead. They are also accustomed to dragons as well. They are not as common down here as they are father up North. However there is the odd dragon flying in the area, rumour has it that there are Dragon Sages living somewhere up in the mountains; that they have ways of communicating with the beasts. Ehren is quite neutral with the fire-breathing reptiles; he isn't friends with any of them but doesn't have any reason to attack them either. The trader that comes through the valley on rare occasion has stories of an archipelago far up North that has more dragons than the eye can see.

Ehren marches through the front door of his abode and places the basket of potatoes on the table. " _Gertrude, I'm back with the potatoes!"_ he calls out.

" _Okay, thanks honey!"_ she calls back from a different part of the house.

Ehren walks back outside and walks around to his medium sized wheat crop. Sometimes the birds would like to snack on his crops so he wanted to scare the birds away. In the meantime, he would check to make sure all of his crops were healthy, and to uproot any dead stalks. Occasionally, Ehren would hear a faint, high pitched noise; something close to a baby's cry. He thought nothing of it, since there were a few newborns in the village, one of which was hard to keep quiet. However for him, the noise became increasingly louder and more frequent. He was buried in the wheat and had a hard time looking around to see the source of the cry. " _It's definitely a baby's cry, but where is it coming from?"_ he asks himself quietly. He turns and walks the fastest way out of the wheat field to see what or who was causing the cries. He walks out of the field and onto a large area of grass where a giant winged creature is hovering maybe 30 feet over his head; the cries very definitive at this point. " _What in God's name?"_ he asks out loud. The creature lands in front of him and makes the ground shake, making Ehren feel at unease. This winged creature was no bird; it was a large, fire breathing dragon.

Ehren has never seen a dragon this close before, it certainly looks majestic with its four wings. He didn't know what to do, should he run? Should he stand still? Should he walk backwards away slowly? He chose to stand in fear; he was not sure what this animal was capable of. The dragon lowers its head and smells Ehren. ' _It's just curious,'_ he mutters to himself in his mind. Once again, the cries of a baby ring out, but Ehren can see that it was _coming from the dragon?_ It couldn't have been the dragon; dragons don't make cries like that…, do they? The four winged dragon turns its owl-like head to its wing in caution. It turns back to face Ehren before extending one of its wings. Only now does he see the source of the cries. Tucked in one of the dragon's wings, was a small child, nestled in a cloak of fur. Ehren looks up at the dragon. " _What do you want from me?"_ The dragon looks down at the baby. " _You want me to take this child?"_ The dragon nods. " _I can't do that! This child is not mine, it has a family! I could never-"_ He pauses. " _Is this child orphaned?"_ The dragon nods again. ' _Intelligent and caring of other species, very interesting'_ " _If you trust me with this child, then I could take it from you,_ " he says before he can stop himself. He reaches put and picks up the child. Ehren realises that it's a small boy; probably a newborn because of its small size. The dragon gives a small grunt and breathes smoke through its nostrils before taking off into the sky, just as the sun reaches over the mountains. Ehren watches as it flies towards the mountains, before disappearing within the rock. The baby begins to cry again. " _No, shush it's okay little one,"_ says Ehren as he rocks the baby. It doesn't take much for the baby to stop crying; he opens his green eyes to Ehren. ' _Poor little guy, all alone. I wonder where he came from?'_ Ehren runs towards his house with the baby in his arms.

He walks through the door where Gertrude is playing with Elise and Katrina. " _Ehren, what was going on out there? I kept hearing a baby crying and what is that in your arms?"_ asks Gertrude.

" _The baby that you heard crying,"_ replies Ehren to a shocked Gertrude. " _You are not going to believe what happened; a_ dragon _flew and landed right in front of me! It gave me this boy."_

" _You just took him?"_ she asks in disbelief. " _That dragon must have abducted that baby! Oh his parents must be worried sick!"_

" _The dragon was fairly smart; it seemed to have understood what I was saying. It seems like the child was abandoned or orphaned. Besides, if the dragon wanted to abduct the child, he would have eaten him for an appetizer, don't you think?"_ Ehren was subconsciously rocking the child in his arms, like a true father would.

" _Okay, but we can't keep him! We already have enough mouths to feed, we don't need another!"_ Katrina just kept looking back and forth between her parents; she wasn't sure what was going on.

" _I was afraid you were going to say that. Alright, later I will go around and see if I can find someone who will be willing to take him off of our hands. But in the meantime, we should feed him and clean him. Who knows how long he has been with the creature?"_

 _"_ _Alright good point,"_ says Gertrude. She reaches out and Ehren hands her the boy. " _We should call him something right now, something temporary just so I don't have to keep saying 'the baby,' or 'him', or 'it'."_

 _"_ _Good point. He did come from the sky in the wing of a dragon-"_

 _"_ _I am NOT calling him dragon, Ehren!"_

 _"_ _I wasn't going to call him dragon; I was thinking something more foreign since his history is unknown."_

 _"_ _What were you thinking of Daddy?"_ pipes in Katrina.

Ehren pauses before looking at his wife and daughter. " _Draconis."_

* * *

 **End of Chapter 3**

 **What did you think of the Chapter? Did you like it or not? Let me know in a review.**

 **Draconis (Pronounced Drah-cone-iss) is a Latin word that literally translates to Dragon. Sorry for the lack of creativity...**

 **As the guest dragonlovewater said in their review (and what I replied with), Dragonese WILL NOT be used in this story and here is my reasoning:**

 **Dragonese is (most commonly) referred to as the 'Dragon Language'. In some stories that I (and probably you as well) have read, Hiccup at one point or another can speak fluent Dragonese to Toothless or any other dragon for that matter. Biologically, it can (more than likely) not happen since the vocal chords and tongue used in speaking would require centuries of evolution to attain, and not be 'learned' in a few short years. This is why Humans can speak any human language but that is it. This is why we can't talk to our dog or our cat, we lack the biological principles to do so. We can imitate their calls sure (and probably disrespect them in the process) but we cannot literally speak to them. The most we can do is understand their calls and behaviours (and they can understand us to a degree, this is why dogs freak out when a person says words like 'Walk' or 'Food', they have associated these words with these positive outcomes and thus react the way they do when we say them.) Take Cesar Millan (The Dog Whisperer), he can understand our canine friends very well without having to actually talk to them. He understands a dog's behaviour and what the dog truly wants. Hiccup (or Draconis for that matter) is essentially the 'Dragon Whisperer', he will eventually be able to understand dragons very well, just like he currently does in the actual franchise. In short, Hiccup will not learn Dragonese but will become the Dragon Whisperer.**

 **Sorry for the whole Dragonese rant, I know some people like it and that's fine, I'm not saying it's wrong, it is fantasy after all. I'm just saying that you won't see any Dragonese in any of my stories.**

 **Thanks for reading, and I shall see you in the next chapter.**

 **You Are Awesome!**


	4. Valka the Dragon Slayer

**Hello my readers, I'm back to bring you Chapter 4.**

 **I have some explaining to do. First, you might have noticed that I haven't been uploading regularly which doesn't really make sense since the words per chapter usually are on average between 2,000 and 3,000 words. I want to make it clear that I am doing this for fun, and because I want to do it. I am working two jobs, not to mention I have some personal issues to deal with and I am sorry that I cannot deliver the story as fast as I want to.**

 **However, for this chapter I had a goal in mind and that was to release this chapter on my birthday (August 24) and that is what I have done. Mission accomplished! (Guess how old I turn!)**

 **All joking aside though, you readers are the reason I am doing this. To the people that review, you put a smile on my face. It shows that people out there care about me and the things I do when in the past I have experience, much less than that. That's why I love you, and this fandom in general. I don't know your name or your story or what you look like, but that doesn't matter. Here in the fandom, we are a family and I thank you for it and I love you! I want to upload chapters more regularly, believe me I do, and I will try. But I ask for your patience, I might not upload daily or every other day, but my goal is to upload a chapter per story at least once a month.**

 **Personal struggles are hard to deal with, but I hope to win the battle and I believe that I can, because of you :)**

 **Anyway, I want to thank the 100+ of you who followed this story in just 3 chapters! HOLY THOR! You are all amazing!**

 **GUEST REVIEWS**

 **Guest (2) - I'm glad you like the story, and thank you for understanding my reasoning behind 'Dragonese'**

 **END OF GUEST REVIEWS**

 **Sorry for the long Author's Note :(**

 **CHAPTER 4**

* * *

Approaching the coast of Berk is a small fishing vessel. Onboard is 'Fearless' Finn Hofferson, with Bucket and Mulch accompanying him. The full moon is high above the horizon; the winds and waters are calm. Finn was held up due to bad weather at Traders Isle and was arriving to Berk late. He was trading some wares for some precious supplies for his newborn niece or nephew; he left while his sister-in-law was still pregnant with the child. He left a week ago and he assumed that the child was born at this point; only one way to find out. Finn hopped off the boat while Bucket tied the vessel to the dock. There was no one there to greet the trio, but Finn was not surprised since it must have been the middle of the night. Throwing the basket of supplies over his shoulder, he makes his way up the hill towards the Hofferson hall. Walking through the village, it was clear that he missed a dragon raid. Judging by the amount of damage, the raid was either recent or extremely powerful. "Odin's ghost," whispers Finn as he inspects the damage. He hopes that no one was killed in the raid. He quietly opens the door to the relatively undamaged Hofferson hall and makes his way towards his brother's bedside.

Halvar wakes up to a slight shaking on his shoulder. Slowly opening his eyes, his vision clears to show his brother Finn greeting him. "Finn? Where have you been?" asks Halvar quietly while trying not to wake Ingrid.

"A storm was holding us back on Trader's Isle. I'm sorry that it took so long."

"Thank the gods that you're okay," says Halvar. He starts to get out of bed. "Let's go talk somewhere else." Finn nods in agreement. The two make their way outside the hall.

Finn closes the door behind him. "I take it that there was a dragon raid recently?"

Halvar scoffs. "Getting right to the details, as usual Finn. Yes there was a raid last night."

"I'm sorry Halvar; the damages could have been less severe if you had more help."

Halvar grabs his brother's shoulder to get his attention. "Nonsense Finn, you could have helped but it wouldn't have made a difference." He pauses. "We were… hit pretty hard last night.

"What happened? Did anyone die?" Finn asks with concern. Halvar just looks down in response. "Halvar. Who. Died?" Finn says sternly.

"Hiccup."

Finn looks flabbergasted. "Hiccup? As in our heir Hiccup?" he says aghast. Halvar nods sadly. "W-what happened? Are Stoick and Valka okay?"

"A dragon broke into their home during the raid, and took him from the cradle. As for our Chief and his wife, they are fine, just broken up."

"Where was Valka? Wasn't she there?" Finn is cycling through emotions, unable to comprehend that the heir is dead.

"I don't know where she was, but she wasn't there to protect the child. Regardless, we are all quite shaken about what happened. We are holding our children closer each night; I just hope that Stoick and Valka can give us another heir, but only time will tell," says Halvar.

Finn thought it would be better to change the subject of the conversation. "How is Ingrid doing? Is she still pregnant or-"

"Congratulations Finn, you're an uncle," jokes Halvar. "You can meet your niece in the morning."

"My niece?" Finn looks ecstatic.

"Yes, your niece Astrid." Halvar gives the biggest smile since he found out that Hiccup was taken.

"Congratulations Halvar!" says Finn loudly while still trying to be quiet.

"Finn, people are sleeping! Look, there are some things that I need to talk to you but it's quite late. Let's talk about this tomorrow."

"Alright Halvar," says Finn as he opens the door to the house. "Have a good night." The idea that Hiccup was dead is still bothering Finn. Who was to blame?

* * *

Stoick wakes up after a rough night of sleeping, although who can blame him? His only son was taken by that Thor forsaken dragon. Hiccup's cries still haunt him in his sleep. He rolls over to find that Valka was already out of bed. He slowly gets up and makes his way to the hearth in the centre of his home. There is no fire, and there are no coals; only ash remains from the fire last night. "Valka?" he calls, to which there is no response. He puts on the remainder of his clothes and his boots before walking out of his newly repaired home.

The sun shines directly into Stoick's face as he closes the door behind him. Walking down the hill, he notices that many villagers are leaving their homes to start their own individual days. Walking through the plaza, he looks around to notice that his villagers seemed to be acting like the dragon raid never happened. Sure their heir was taken, but children have died before and this was unsettling for him. He walks up to the forge where Gobber starts opening the windows for the day. "Morning Gobber," says Stoick.

Gobber turns to face his good friend. "Mornin' Stoick, what brings you here this early in the morning?"

"Valka wasn't home when I woke up; I was hoping that you had an idea as to where she is?"

"Sadly, I don't know. Give 'er time Stoick, I don't fully understand what ye two are goin' through but I know it's tough." Stoick sighs loudly. "Look, I'm sorry for your loss Stoick, but the lad wasn't expected to live that long anyway, you know that."

Stoick sighs again. "I know. Why did my first born have to be so… you know, small?"

"Don't blame yer child on what he wasn't, cherish what he was. It's a shame that he was taken so soon."

"Gobber-"

"I'm sorry; I opened ma big mouth again."

"It's alright. I'll uh… see you around. I got things to do." Stoick begins to turn and leave when Gobber stops him.

"Stoick, wait. Halvar stopped by a little while ago; Finn came home last night, and is doing well."

Stoick turns around. "Good, good to hear." He pauses. "At least we know he is safe. Anyway, I should probably go find Valka."

"Take care Stoick," says Gobber before returning to the forge to work.

Stoick starts to walk away from the Forge and heads towards the Great Hall when Ingrid jogs up to him; Finn was somewhere else, playing with his niece. "Chief, I have been looking all over for you! It's Valka, she's… I don't know how to explain it, but she's at the Kill Ring." Stoick's eyes open in shock at the urgency heard in her voice and the look on her face.

"Thanks Ingrid, I'll head there right now," he says and turns to run towards the Kill Ring.

"Right behind you Chief," she calls after him.

When Stoick runs into the arena, he finds the place an absolute mess; targets spread around haphazardly and splinters of woods litter the stone floor. In the centre of the arena stands Valka, anger and determination on her face. She holds a battle-axe in a tight, white-knuckled death grip and faces a mostly undamaged target. She hurls the axe at the target and it hits its mark. Stoick watches in awe and horror as his wife runs up to the handle and lifts the target and axe in the air and smashing them on the ground, sending shards of dry wood everywhere. "Valka!" cries Stoick as he cautiously makes his way to her. "What in Thor's name are you doing?!"

"It's the dragons' fault Stoick! They all have to pay for what they did!" she screams unintentionally at Stoick who in turn is shocked by Valka's blunt words. "I'm training for the next raid so that the dragons can feel my wrath!"

Stoick reaches a gentle hand towards her face. "Valka, I-"

"Don't touch me!" she roars in her defence and pushes Stoick's hand away before he gently grabs the axe and her wrist.

"Valka, stop. Please, this isn't you," he says gently.

Ingrid steps forward. "Stoick is right. Valka, we're close friends and I know you; this isn't who you are. You're a loving and caring individual, not a dragon killer." She stands beside Stoick and looks Valka in the eyes. "You have the biggest heart of any Viking on the island. Please drop the axe, it's safer that way."

Valka looks shocked and tears well up in her eyes. She releases her grip on the axe and Stoick throws it to the side before embracing her, to which she releases her emotions and sobs into his shoulder. "I'm s-sorry Stoick," she cries out.

"Shh, don't be sorry Valka. You're right, this _is_ the dragons' fault, but this isn't the way to do it. Look Ingrid is right about you, you have a big heart and the people know that. I'm not asking you to forget our son, I know I won't. I'm asking you to be the mother for the next generation, for them to look up to you. If you will listen to me, I have an idea that can secure the future for this village." Valka looks up and shyly nods. "I want you to do this for me, for the parents of children like Astrid or Snotlout, and most of all, I want you to do it for Hiccup," says Stoick while getting slightly choked up. Stoick looks to Ingrid. "Gather everyone, and tell them that I have an announcement for them in the Great Hall.

The entire village murmurs in the hall, sending their voices echoing off the stone walls and making the room almost unbearable to stand in with noise. Gobber starts banging on a table and standing on top of it to get the villages attention. "Oi! Yer Chief has an announcement for ye, listen up!"

The hall quiets down quickly. "Thank you Gobber," says Stoick to the blacksmith who nods in return. "The village repairs are coming along quite nicely, I thank you all for your generous support!" The village roars in cheers and hurrahs even though they didn't have much choice in the matter of the village repairs. "I have a few announcements. First, we would like to welcome back one of Berk's most treasured warriors, Fearless Finn Hofferson!" The hall roars again. "Secondly, once repairs are done, we shall sail for the nest! Give the devils what they deserve!" More applause. "Finally, from now on, I want all children and their mothers to bunker down in the Great Hall for every dragon raid. The hall shall be guarded by Berk's finest warriors and my wife Valka will assist the families during the raid. If Berk is to survive, we need the next generation to thrive. It's what my son would have wanted, to see his village live!" roars Stoick as the village starts applauding and cheering for the idea. Sure, it wasn't particularly new but Stoick was right, the children must be protected at all costs.

* * *

Asmund Ingerman sits at the hearth in his home, with his wife Runa sitting next to him. He knew that in several months, he would become a father and life for him and Runa would change. For as majority of the evening, they sat in silence; they watched the flames dance in front of them. Asmund breaks the silence. "I'm assuming that I'll be going to the nest with Stoick when we leave in a couple days," he says to Runa.

"I know you will be honey, but I just want you to be careful."

"I always am, but I follow Stoick and he's been doing well for us for a while now, Hiccup's death won't slow him down." Runa chuckles quietly. "Anyway, I'm off to bed. I got a busy day tomorrow." He stands up and makes his way towards his bedroom but a knock at the door stops him. He turns and walks to the door before swinging it open. "Halvar? What in gods' name are you doing at this late hour?"

Halvar looks stern at Asmund and behind him stand Finn, Ingrid, and Gobber. "We need to talk."

"Uh, please. Come on in," says Asmund as he moves away to let the four visitors in. "So what is this all about?"

"Nothing that is spoken here leaves this room, understand?" asks Halvar, completely blowing off Asmund's question. Runa and Asmund nod questionably. Gobber shuts the door behind him before Halvar begins. "It's about the Jorgensons."

Asmund rolls his eyes. "Oh boy, now what?"

"I don't know specifically, but I do know this. I have a suspicion that Spitelout is planning something that could throw this entire village into chaos."

So why not talk to Stoick about this?" asks Runa.

"I feel like if we tell Stoick, it could spark a war. Spitelout is one to fight, not to back down. Look, I don't want to be here any longer than we need to be. I don't want to start suspicions from someone who is more aligned with the Jorgensons."

"So what do you want us to do Halvar?" asks Asmund.

"Protect Stoick and Valka. Spitelout might not act anytime soon, but it could happen. It could happen in a few years for all I know, but Spitelout could do something bad to the Chief. I'm not asking you to confront Spitelout, just be wary of him and his actions. He is planning something, but as for what, I don't know."

"Well these accusations are quite vague Halvar, but I trust ye," says Gobber.

"Good. So are we all in agreement to protect Stoick and intercept Spitelout when the time is necessary?"

"You know this could do more harm than good, right?" suggests Runa.

"Yes, but I believe Stoick will thank us in good time. As for Spitelout, use your common judgement when dealing with him. Should any of you find anything suspicious about him, gather the six of us in a quiet place like this and inform us. Let this conversation and following conversations on the subject remain between us." Halvar steps forward and holds a hand out towards Asmund. "Are we all in agreement?"

Asmund grabs Halvar's hand without hesitation and shakes it. "I agree to those terms." Everyone else murmurs or nods in agreement. The two men release the handshake.

"Good. And remember," He looks around the room. "The Chief mustn't know."

* * *

 **END OF CHAPTER 4**

 **Pop quiz: What did I reference in the line "And remember, the Chief mustn't know." ? :3**

 **First person gets extra love from yours truly :)**

 **What did you think of the chapter?**

 **Let me know in a Review!**

 **Author's Note: I have this personal goal of seeing things I start to the end, and I do not want to give up any of my stories. If for whatever reason that I cannot upload in a long period of time, I will sadly put the story on Hiatus and I will let you readers know. That doesn't mean I quit, it means that it could take longer to upload the next chapter.**

 **I hope you understand.**

 **You are all amazing and I love you! :)**


	5. ON HIATUS

**Hello My Readers**

 **I first want to start off by apologizing for this message, this is truly the last thing I wanted to do.**

 **However, I unfortunately have to put this story on a TEMPORARY HIATUS**

 **This does not mean that this story is over, or up for adoption. I just won't be uploading to it for an unknown period of time.**

 **Earlier this year, I thought it would be possible for me to write three individual stories. Unfortunately, I have surpassed my cognitive ability and I cannot handle the energy needed to do this.**

 **In addition to this, my mental illness is not helping me focus on this challenge either.**

 **I do want to complete this story, as I want to complete all my stories. As a new FanFiction writer, I had to learn this challenge the hard way.**

 **That being said, I will continue to write this story when More Than a Shadow and Return of the Forgotten are completed.**

 **I hope in doing this that the updates will be more frequent.**

 **I am sorry my readers. I feel like this is the best way, even though it hurts the most.**

 **I hope you understand.**

 **You Are Amazing, and I will see you all in the next chapter.**

 **Toothless-Nightfury96**


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